DISGRACED WEINER PLEADS GUILTY; WIFE FILES FOR DIVORCE
new york» Former New York congressman Anthony Weiner, the disgraced politician whose “sexting” scandals shattered the Democrat’s career, admitted Friday in federal court to sending sexual material to a 15-year-old girl.
Weiner, 52, pleaded guilty to transferring obscene material to a minor — a crime that will require him to register as a sex offender and could mean years in prison.
“I have a sickness, but I do not have an excuse,” he told the court. “I apologize to everyone I have hurt. I apologize to the teenage girl, whom I mistreated so badly.”
The day was marked by an emotional courtroom confession and news that Weiner’s estranged wife, Huma Abedin, filed for divorce after a separation that began last year amid the evolving sex scandal. A spokesperson with the Manhattan Supreme Court confirmed that Abedin, a close aide to Hillary Clinton, had filed court papers seeking a divorce.
The case came to the attention of the FBI last year when the 15year-old girl in North Carolina told the Daily Mail about her online communications with Weiner.
During a federal investigation, agents seized a laptop that Weiner had shared with Abedin. On the laptop, agents discovered numerous emails that Clinton had sent to Abedin, prompting an announcement from then-FBI Director James Comey in the days leading up to the presidential election that the agency was reopening its investigation into Clinton’s emails.
Comey later announced that no charges would be brought in the case.